Determining the reliability of craniocervical flexion test in asymptomatic individuals

Seema Kotwani; D N Bid; Dinesh Ghatamaneni; Khalid A Alahmari; Thangamani Ramalingam; S Paul Silvian

doi:10.1142/S101370251850004X

Determining the reliability of craniocervical flexion test in asymptomatic individuals

Hong Kong Physiother J. 2018 Jun;38(1):33-40. doi: 10.1142/S101370251850004X. Epub 2018 Apr 6.

Authors

Seema Kotwani¹, D N Bid¹, Dinesh Ghatamaneni², Khalid A Alahmari², Thangamani Ramalingam¹, S Paul Silvian²

Affiliations

¹ The sarvajanik college of physiotherapy Opp. Lockhat & Mulla Hospital Chhada-ole, Badatwadi, Rampura Surat 395003, Gujarat, India.
² Department of Medical Rehabilitation Sciences College of Applied Medical Sciences King Khalid University, Abha, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

Background: The inter-rater reliability of the craniocervical flexion test (CCFT) has not been established.

Objective: To investigate the intra-rater and inter-rater reliabilities of the CCFT in asymptomatic subjects.

Methods: Sixty asymptomatic subjects were randomly selected for the study. The CCFT was measured on each subject by two testers for inter-rater reliability and by one of the testers after a gap of seven days for the intra-rater reliability. Before testing, the participants were trained for the movement and compensations were corrected.

Results: The CCFT has high inter-rater reliability (intra-class correlation coefficient $=$ 0.907, standard error of mean $=$ 0.735) and high intra-rater reliability (intra-class correlation coefficient $=$ 0.986, standard error of mean $=$ 0.287). A Bland & Altman limits of agreement analysis has confirmed the high inter- and intra-rater reliabilities of the test.

Conclusion: The CCFT has high inter-rater and intra-rater reliabilities in asymptomatic subjects.

Keywords: Craniocervical flexion test; deep cervical flexors; reliability.